People running scared of cyclists in Cork

CheGuedara

Irish Times Letter Writer wrote:

Madam, – The debate on the Letters page on cycling and cycle lanes is missing the main problem caused by cyclists: that is using “footpaths” as bike lanes. Of course it is illegal to cycle on pedestrian ways, but even gardaí seem to think it is okay.


Here in Cork city people are running scared of speeding cyclists. Some go so fast that you would think they were in the Tour de France. It is only a matter of time before there is a serious accident.


As I pen this letter in Cork city library, people are speeding on mountain bikes right outside the door. It is scary!


I support cycle lanes as one who never drove a car in my 60 years. I cycled to work in London for 30 years, but never once on a footpath.
I am going to mount a campaign: footpaths for pedestrians only. – Yours, etc,
MICHAEL O’DONNELL,
Old Youghal Road, Cork.

Running scared from speeding urban mountainbikers, you'd imagine the general level of fitness in Cork to be pretty stellar! (yet still no all ireland medals...)

Surely as the 'rebel county' Corkonians should practically expect people to fight the Law and and cycle with impunity?!

That's the ball rolling for Friday (and early too!)

thebouldwhacker

Hmmm, I'd swear I've seen ppl cycle on foot paths in other parts of the world too but I've no photo of it, damn...

That 'foot path' out side the library where Mr MICHAEL O’DONNELL was writing his letter, sheltering from the hordes of man eating cyclists is actually a plaza probably 20-30 meters wide so I think if 'It is scary' for him its probably due to him forgetting to take his happy pills.

This be it






Anyway there aer only two types of people who write letters in libraries to news papers, board librarians and people who are scared of everything... I don't think Michael stacks books for a living.

rebel.ranter

Actually that pedestrian crossing is lethal...for cyclists! Not the ones using it illegally as Michael O'Donnell writes but on a wet day (like the photo) you have to consider it as dangerous as ice. Nearly came a cropper there one day. I don't know who woudl want to cycle on that foothpath considering how splippy it is in the wet.

CheGuedara

Jeebus the Grand Parade has changed since I was in UCC - and I'm not gone that long!

You're right though, he's probably scared of everything - I mean back in the day when he was knee high to a grasshopper bikes were all only single speed and couldn't go up hills. Of course in those days they weren't called bikes, they were walter ralieghs patented 'rolling-perambulators' and were made of solid steel, even the saddle and they had wooden spokes

thebouldwhacker

Yea they 'rejuvenated' it.

This means they tore up the cobblestone link streets and put down tarmac. Reduced road space with vast plazas and street lights that look like broken stadium lights. When they were going up everyone thought they had been crashed into. Now Cork centre looks like any generic small city in Europe,

add cheap stone paving, crappy street lights and too many traffic lights and insert city name here

crashoveroid

thebouldwhacker wrote: »

Hmmm, I'd swear I've seen ppl cycle on foot paths in other parts of the world too but I've no photo of it, damn...

That 'foot path' out side the library where Mr MICHAEL O’DONNELL was writing his letter, sheltering from the hordes of man eating cyclists is actually a plaza probably 20-30 meters wide so I think if 'It is scary' for him its probably due to him forgetting to take his happy pills.

This be it






Anyway there aer only two types of people who write letters in libraries to news papers, board librarians and people who are scared of everything... I don't think Michael stacks books for a living.

I remember that corner well thats where i broke my hip off the bike its like ice in the wet

thebouldwhacker

After the grand opening they had to re grout the whole thing because the ladies with the high heels kept getting stuck between the slabs! Muppet's.

Its a nightmare to cycle on alright, and to walk on tbh. I find the little promenade nice but its so small its a bit odd. Don't get me wrong, the place badly needed a face lift but I'm not a fan of what was done. Only for the Echo running a 'save the Fr Matthew Statue' it would have been ripped up, apparently the architect thought it didnt go with the new character of the street! Damn right, the place looks so soulless now nothing but empty space goes with the character of the street!




YOU SHALL NOT DRINK!

ednwireland

crashoveroid wrote: »

I remember that corner well thats where i broke my hip off the bike its like ice in the wet

you shouldnt have been riding round it like you were in the tour de france and scaring people then

beans

Show me a road like Davitt Rd in Dublin, along by the Luas tracks, and I'll show you a handful of grown adults ambling along on the path on their bikes. The Naas Rd is just as bad, in fact every morning there's a chap on one of those pedal-mopeds put-putting down the footpath.

I feel that if people are going to commute by bike, they should cop themselves on and leave the paths to the pedestrians.

Two things that will help, in my opinion:

- Changing people's perception of cycling on the road as a dangerous persuit
- Proper enforcement

It's the bike-equivalent of cars barrelling down a dedicated bike-path. Cyclists on the path have forfeited any rights they may have had on the road; grow up and leave the paths to the toddlers learning to cycle with Mammy in tow.

crashoveroid

ednwireland wrote: »

you shouldnt have been riding round it like you were in the tour de france and scaring people then

I hate to break it to you i was going about 10kph and the bike went from under me its to do with the stone they laid and not that i was speeding

DirkVoodoo

crashoveroid wrote: »

I remember that corner well thats where i broke my hip off the bike its like ice in the wet

It looks like ice too. I don't like this modern city design of using lots of different materials in road/pedestrian paving. Sure it looks nice, but all those different surfaces can make cycling more dangerous. I've had one or two losses of traction around bus stops with those raised bumps and funny railway track paving slabs.

Bus Lane...it's just tarmac, nice friendly tarmac.

Mr. Presentable

Stay off the footpad :D

emty

Ha! Nearly choked on my coffee when I read that in the paper.This is why they should close all the libraries.Is that the plural,must see if there is somewhere I can get a dictionary to check.

thebouldwhacker

At the end of the day the guy is right, people should not cycle on foot paths however if the footpaths are the width of a football field I can see the rational for using them while cycling.....

thebouldwhacker

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94ZXRJ86lhk

Seeing as this is a Cork thread, may as well throw this in, children of Sir Henry's may remember this TUOON.... though if you remember it, you weren't really there


(Cation: Contains pictures which make cork look great: may cause flash backs!!!)


And a bit of Tommy to balance things out:D

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRm9Q2KfzBA

scottreynolds

beans wrote: »

I feel that if people are going to commute by bike, they should cop themselves on and leave the paths to the pedestrians.

thebouldwhacker wrote: »

At the end of the day the guy is right, people should not cycle on foot paths however if the footpaths are the width of a football field I can see the rational for using them while cycling.....

I totally agree. Forget the crap about cycle lanes being silly. Riding into Pedo's is silly. My pet hate is people riding on the Clontarf footpath bt St. Annes park where there's perfectly good road... In fact one pain in the arse made me stop running to let him past on the foot path..... all I could think was wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwaaaaaaannkkkkka

DirkVoodoo

I never understand how people do it, i would feel a lot less safe on the footpath than the road.

I was once told by a Garda to cycle on the footpath as a solution to an incident with a motorist. I tried to tell him it was ridiculously dangerous and the road was fine, it was just the motorist in this case was the problem.

There seems to be a common theme between this thread and the red light jumping thread: we need better enforcement of road traffic law for all road users.

petethedrummer

nipplenuts wrote: »

Stay off the footpad :D

No the original rant was to stay on the footpad. You're in the motorists way on the road. As soon As I perfect the hoverbike, we'll be out of everyone's way.

odonogc

Cycling on footpaths just gives cyclists a bad name, and it gives the motoring muppets a monopoly on the road. Cyclists need to stop apologising for being on the road, car drivers will eventually realise that these two-wheeled aliens are actually people going to work, same as in every other city in Europe.

And stop wearing hi-viz during broad daylight! It's like asking permission ot be on the road. Even in Ireland blind people are not allowed to drive.

beans

On these grey days, hi-viz can only be a good thing. Anything that makes your presence more obvious to drivers is ok with me. We are talking about luminous yellow waistcoats here, right?

Now lights in the middle of the day is just wasteful (unless it's a DublinBike)

Mr. Presentable

petethedrummer wrote: »

No the original rant was to stay on the footpad. You're in the motorists way on the road. As soon As I perfect the hoverbike, we'll be out of everyone's way.

Whooosh >>>> Look it up when they bring back search

petethedrummer

beans wrote: »

On these grey days, hi-viz can only be a good thing. Anything that makes your presence more obvious to drivers is ok with me. We are talking about luminous yellow waistcoats here, right?

I saw a fella last week with luminous gloves and a luminous scarf. Along with his hi-viz. I died a little inside.

Is this the original Footpad incident? http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=58147732

rebel.ranter

petethedrummer wrote: »

I saw a fella last week with luminous gloves and a luminous scarf. Along with his hi-viz. I died a little inside.

Is this the original Footpad incident? http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=58147732

Could have been worse he could have had these on as well :

brianthebard

petethedrummer wrote: »

I saw a fella last week with luminous gloves and a luminous scarf. Along with his hi-viz. I died a little inside.

Is this the original Footpad incident? http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=58147732

I saw a woman the other day wearing a luminous scarf. She wasn't a cyclist she just had poor fashion sense.

DBCyc

scottreynolds wrote: »

Riding into Pedo's is silly.

Tee hee :pac:

tomasrojo

petethedrummer wrote: »

I saw a fella last week with luminous gloves and a luminous scarf. Along with his hi-viz. I died a little inside.

Is this the original Footpad incident? http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=58147732

I've already asked on this forum about getting hi-viz facepaint. You can't be too visible.

cdaly_

scottreynolds wrote: »

My pet hate is people riding on the Clontarf footpath bt St. Annes park where there's perfectly good road...

Seriously dodgy surface in the bike lanes on that stretch of road. I came off twice in the space of a month on that section because of the state of the road surface. Took 2 months for the ripped skin to fully heal.

Victor

footpaths for pedestrians only.

While he may have a point, he should point at motorists also.

rubadub

beans wrote: »

I feel that if people are going to commute by bike, they should cop themselves on and leave the paths to the pedestrians.

And pedestrians should leave cycletracks to cyclists.

odonogc wrote: »

Cycling on footpaths just gives cyclists a bad name.

But you never hear "they give pedestrians a bad name", I hate this us & them bullsh!t. I do not define myself by the mode of transport I use, and I expect most people who cycle also walk & drive too.

DirkVoodoo wrote: »

I never understand how people do it, i would feel a lot less safe on the footpath than the road.

I was once told by a Garda to cycle on the footpath as a solution to an incident with a motorist. I tried to tell him it was ridiculously dangerous and the road was fine, it was just the motorist in this case was the problem.

I used to cycle on the footpath up (the now widened) from stillorgan to sandyford. Cars would squeeze past dangerously close, many gardai passed and saw me and never said a thing, I expect they had the cop on to see I had sense. I also came to a full stop if I encountered a pedestrian.

beans wrote: »

It's the bike-equivalent of cars barrelling down a dedicated bike-path. .

With the exception of 1 or 2 couriers on grafton street I have never seen cyclist going fast on paths. I see them slow down, I have seen mopeds on cycletracks going slow, it didn't bother me much. There will always be some asshole, on any mode of transport.

Jumpy

crashoveroid wrote: »

I remember that corner well thats where i broke my hip off the bike its like ice in the wet

It looks like the starting area of the Sean Kelly. Minus the deathtrap gutter.

beans

rubadub wrote: »

I used to cycle on the footpath up (the now widened) from stillorgan to sandyford. Cars would squeeze past dangerously close, many gardai passed and saw me and never said a thing...

Whatever gets you through, safely and soundly. I will say, though - it's generally better for everyone if we all follow the rules laid down for all commuters; peds, bikes and vehicles. If there's a section of road unsuitable for cycling, I'd say it's better to try and address that, rather than taking to the footpath - the problem still exists, and now pedestrians on the path have a problem too I don't know the road in question, perhaps it really is completely unsuitable for bike-travel?

tomasrojo

Yes, what is that road, rubadub?

I used to cycle on the footpath up (the now widened) from stillorgan to sandyford.

I think the name of the road got lost in the wash. Is it Upper Kilmacud Road, perhaps?

rubadub

tomasrojo wrote: »

Yes, what is that road, rubadub?

I think the name of the road got lost in the wash. Is it Upper Kilmacud Road, perhaps?

Yes, thats the road, the very steep section which goes past a school. At the top you would be going quite slow and cars had no patience, nor buses.

beans wrote: »

I don't know the road in question, perhaps it really is completely unsuitable for bike-travel?

It was widened as I said, and now has cycletracks on both sides now I think (I no longer live in the area).

beans wrote: »

I'd say it's better to try and address that, rather than taking to the footpath - the problem still exists, and now pedestrians on the path have a problem too

Thing was pedestrians never seemed to have problem, if they were walking it was blatantly obvious why I was on the path, and like I said I would come to a halt to let them pass, if there was any "us & them" going on then it was "peds+cyclist vs motorists" anybody could see it was a ridiculously dangerous stretch, no doubt why it got widened. I would take up more room walking on the path wheeling my bike. I have had the same cycling down grafton street, I go at a snails pace, I have seen gardai stopping couriers, they never stopped me as they could see I was slow & in control, if walking a bike there is more danger of people getting clipped by your pedals.